Following the Tai Ji Principle

I haven't written anything lately as there has been a stasis in my writing abilities. Many things are self evident and others need explanation, while others need to be learned on a deeper level before they are being shared. I have been paying more attention to the "martial" aspect of Tai Ji Quan that has been passed down to us by Cheng Man Ching. It has been known that he was a serious and dangerous fighter in his youth, participated in bouts and won them, which is evident from his reaching an age of 72. He wouldn't be able to reach this esteemed age, since in those days there were no octagons and no cages, peoples fought somewhat secretly and the winner emerged as a newly initiated prospective teacher.


In any case, stemming from the above, there is a known story about a fighter who issued a challenge to another fighter, because he wanted to prove himself. The other one agreed under one condition - they both sign a document disposing him of any responsibility that may come from harming the challenger. Once that was heard, the challenger decided to think it over and changed his mind. All is well. And the little ability that we have shouldn't be wasted on challenges. This is not a good way for a Tai Chi player, because. well you never know who you' re up against. And although you may train as if you are going to face the best of the best, that is still not enough, there is still an unknown component there, the Deh, something lurking in the darkness, the Mysterious Gate, as it came to be called in the great Classic of the Lao Tzu.


The point here that I am trying to make, is that a fight is a result of 2 people agreeing to the conditions. They plug into each other and then it's on. Thus all sports come from this simple formula, and rarely go beyond brute mastery and strength. Even if someone is really good they still have to use some speed and have a hell of a stamina to survive the ring or the octagon. However, this is not so with Tai Ji Quan, which promotes inner strength (jin), which also equals to the strength of the spirit (shen). In Tai Ji, if one of them refuses, the fight is not happening. This is a result not of fear, but of spiritual stamina, and is very different.


The Spirit of Great Fearlessness that Professor talked about is an ever present light in the practice of Tai Ji. It originates from the strong believe in the power of softness - that soft does overcome the hard, and leads to a deeper-than-ever relaxation of the body, and with it the mind. In order to be fully relaxed, one must not react to force with force, which is one of the requirements of the loss investment.


Continuing with the same idea, if we take it to be a metaphor of life and relationship, not resisting force with force becomes almost an axiom in an everyday communication with the loved ones. We feel pressure, but instead of putting up resistance, we empty out! It is hard at first, and takes one on an amazing and complicated journey, which is what the spiritual practice is. It is hard, because we are not used to that. It is easier to fight back, in order to prove how strong or psychologically savvy you are. Once you do though - it is all gone, because you have allowed yourself to be compromised and forsaken the stability and power of the Tai Ji principle.


Interestingly enough, we all have it, but somehow the deep awareness of this principle has to be learned paradoxically. We all know the power of the investment in loss when we are little, and have no hard shells, when we are open and agile, fearlessly climbing anywhere we want without ever questioning the validity and legality of our effort. Then it changes. Life brings challenges, and because everything around us, with a few exceptions seems to be doing the same thing - we do it too. We get hard and so our breathing from fetal becomes more shallow, with it the goals change, and so it goes. We are basically in an octagon of life.


Tai Ji Quan, and the Daoist practice in general has been known as the "journey of return", because you try to revert to the "original state". That of being like a small child. However, it is a small child now locked in a big body that takes more space, and he or she has responsibilities and has to make deliberate choices. But it starts from seemingly simple commitment - you feel the pressure, rather than resisting back, just empty out and allow for it to disperse. Something we do invthe beginner sensing hands practice.


All is well, but with all that, let's not forget that the major, and perhaps the greatest vehicle to be used is a hand form, the 37 posture Cheng Man Ching form. It starts from the basic commitment to perform the form daily, but also working on it in your spare time, because substituting muscle strength for alignment equals investing in loss because we sort of have to grow an extra organ, that we didn't have before. It is quite amazing when this extra organ gains functionality, and of course what happens? You want to go out and fight! You can see the irony here, but no rush, stay soft - if you can.